Brutal mid-cap sell-off gives OMGI's Watts 'another bite of the cherry'

Sell-off gives Watts 'another bite of the cherry'

The FTSE 250 (ex ITs) is on the verge of entering correction territory after a steep sell-off in recent weeks. Richard Watts, manager of the Old Mutual UK Mid Cap fund, tells Alasdair Pal how he has responded.

Richard Watts, the manager of the £1.4bn Old Mutual UK Mid Cap fund, has faced a tough 2014 so far along with his mid-cap peers. A brutal correction saw his fund lose 8.4% during the two-month downturn in March and April, a period he said was “disappointing and frustrating”. However, the top-performing manager said such events give him “another bite of the cherry” to add to high-conviction holdings. Despite the sell-off, Watts continues to outperform peers, his fund returning 59% in the three years to 6 May, versus the FTSE 250 (ex-ITs) benchmark return of 51%, and the 35% return from...